Just Say No: Why AOL's Infamous Customer Service Debacle has Become the Ultimate Marketing Cliche

Let's say you're writing a marketing book. Advice: Under no circumstance regurgitate the story of Vincent Ferrari, the blogger who posted a recording of his call with an AOL rep who tried to prevent him from canceling his service.

We have advice for anyone planning to write a book on marketing—and there are scads out there, with pithy titles like The New Influencers, Tactical Transparency and The Brand Who Cried Wolf. Under no circumstance regurgitate the story of Vincent Ferrari, the blogger who posted a 21-minute recording of his phone call with an AOL customer rep that tried to prevent him from canceling his service. The blog post became what the New York Times likened to a "top-of-the-charts single," and Ferrari ended up on The Today Show while AOL became a blogospheric whipping boy. This is usually served up as a cautionary tale: Companies that don't listen to their customers in this day of rapid communication could end up dipped in dog doo doo.

Um, duh?

Seriously, is there anybody with a 5th grade education who doesn't already know this? Yet, book after book after book on marketing cites the Ferrari incident. Wiley published not just one, but four marketing tomes by different authors, all of which spout Ferrari's techno-tale of woe. What, don't authors read other people's books?

Fast Company Edict: Say no to Ferrari and any other oft-told anecdote. And dear would-be authors, while you're at it, don't re-re-re-relate the story of "Dell Lies. Dell Sucks," the prickly Jeff Jarvis post from 2005 on why Dell's customer service was the pits—unless you're Jeff. Then you're cool.